Lena Dunham, writer-director-thesp-exec producer ‘Girls’ on HBO

Women's Impact Report 2012: Creatives

After gaining notice for her microbudget indie “Tiny Furniture,” the then-24-year-old Dunham and producer Judd Apatow pitched the half-hour comedy “Girls” to HBO. The raw and realistic series about twentysomethings in New York quickly drew criticism from those who didn’t get its of-the-moment confessional approach. But “Girls” clearly touched a collective nerve, gathering three Emmy noms for Dunham and one for best comedy for the show itself.

What we should know: “I’ve learned a tremendous amount creatively but the biggest and most hard-earned lessons have been in navigating a managerial position, delegating and moving through a day as efficiently as possible. That’s the stuff your megaphone-wielding director fantasies don’t prepare you for.”

Advice for future scribes-helmers: “I would tell them that there is a space for them, they are needed. I would tell them to share the story that feels honest, not the one they think that networks want to hear. I would tell them not to question their own right to be there.”

Work week: “I don’t like being connected 24/7, but I usually am. I refresh Twitter as thoughtlessly as some twirl their hair. But I am trying my darndest to carve out a quiet space for myself to think and dream. I usually pick the exact wrong moments to unplug, like right before a close friend has an upsetting breakup or we lose a shooting location or my mom needs to know what I want to eat.”